In what language should our productions be sung?
The use of the Ukrainian language in classical music has been debated for years. The latest active attempts by the National Opera of Ukraine to stage new productions in the original language provoked the indignation of some opera enthusiasts. One can hear categorical statements that the practice of performing international classics in Ukrainian translation has long been done away with, while Ukrainian spectator has fallen victim to the attempts of the National Opera management to cash in at any cost on foreign tours across Europe’s so- called hinterland. But let us look at the problem from a different perspective. Even when the National Opera did not yet enjoy the status of a national institution, it was always a place of cultural recreation not only for the nation’s intellectual elite but also for foreign tourists the inflow of whom has greatly increased after independence. Would it be interesting, say, for a Japanese to listen to Verdi or Wagner in Ukrainian translation? Of course not, even if he did not know Italian or German. Everyone wants to hear the original. What, then, should be done in this situation to keep both the wolves and sheep satisfied? Today, we present our readers with the reflections on this matter by Maryna CHERKASHYNA, Doctor of Art Studies, Professor at the National Tchaikovsky Musical Academy, Head of the Foreign Music Department.
“The whole world has a well- developed system of opera theaters of different types,” Ms. Cherkashyna says. “There have always been representative, parade-type operas composed on the occasion of important dates or other events and repertory operas. The latter have always been sung in the language of the country in which this theater or another existed. It is not quite right to regard the original-or-translation controversy as an alternative-free problem. Both should exist, i.e., there should be opera in translation for local audiences and one in the original for foreign spectators.”
“In what way is this problem being solved in other countries?”
“Take Britain, London, for example. There are two theaters there: Covent Garden, a world-class theater visited by tourists and sophisticated audiences. It is impossible to imagine an English-language opera there: there is the English National Opera for this purpose, where all productions are performed only in translation. Large governmental funds are spent on translation, for Britons consider themselves a nation that has the right to hear the world classics in high-quality translation.”
“Under this logic, if Ukraine’s leading opera house has the status of a national theater, all performances in it should only be in translation.”
“It is only natural that the National Opera of Ukraine prefers productions in the original language, for this institution lays claim to being a world-class theater and strives for international acclaim. Otherwise, there can be no question of attracting foreign tours or tourists. However, the theater should also work for its own spectator who needs to see translated operas, perhaps the same operas with a different cast. I am convinced our National Opera, with its huge staff of soloists and a big choir, could prepare two sets of performers. And, in general, one opera house is not enough for a metropolitan city like Kyiv.”
“But opera is very expensive. It is pure utopia to open another opera house under today’s conditions.”
“The idea of having two opera houses in Kyiv is not so utopian. There is an opera studio attached to the National Tchaikovsky Music Academy, which has long claimed the right to become the city’s second opera house. There also is the Children’s Musical Theater in Podil, where I think there is no sense at all to stage grand operas in the original language. And it does not need large budget funds. But, as long as here is no official decision on this, the National Opera should fulfill this dual function. We live in a time of compromises, so if we cannot live like the British do, we must seek a compromise.”
“Could subtitles become one compromise option?”
“This is just the ideal, rather than compromise, option which should be implemented as soon as possible. This is far easier than creating one more theater and does not require so much money. The tradition of using subtitles comes from visual culture, where translation of the text is subtitled. The Mariyinsky Opera House in Saint Petersburg has already been equipped with subtitles. When I watched Mozart’s The Magic Flute there, I understood for the first time the true sense of this opera, for there was an accurate and detailed translation of the text. The opera was staged very wittily: the German dialogues were embedded with Russian phrases, which highly increased the opera’s comic effect. By the way, this is one more compromise option Ukrainian opera producers might take up.”
“Russian operatic classics — Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, et al. — account for about a third of the National Opera’s current repertory of over 30 titles. The current opinion is these operas should not necessarily be translated because all Ukrainians understand Russian.”
“When I participated in the Pushkin jubilee conference at Moscow State University, I was also asked this. And I answered that the fact of translation is very important, first of all, for Ukrainian culture. If the poem Evgeny Onegin has been translated into Ukrainian and there is a skillfully-translated libretto of Tchaikovsky’s homonymous opera, Ukrainian culture rises to a higher level. There is a great number of translations of other works done by such very gifted people as Tychyna, Rylsky, Lukash, Khomichevsky (Borys Ten), and others. They have done tremendous work, very essential for our Ukrainian culture. In this connection, I always recall an interesting episode in the history of foreign music. When Austrian composer Gustav Mahler applied for to work at the Budapest Opera House, he signed a contract whereby he was obliged to stage the operas of Hungarian composers and, hence, learn the Hungarian language. However, he failed to learn the language because he left for Vienna shortly, but this very fact shows Hungarian respect for their own culture and language. We still have to educate ourselves in this spirit.”
“Don’t you think very few operas by modern Ukrainian composers are being staged? Perhaps this creates an impression that the Ukrainian language does not sound on the National Opera stage?”
“It is impossible to compose today works of such a genre as opera unless there is an order. The practice of ordering operas by the Ministry of Culture, no matter how imperfect it may have been, has, unfortunately, sunk into oblivion. Even the last four operas by such a composer as Yuly Meitus, who wrote a lot of operas, have not been staged. And the thirteen operas by Vitaly Hubarenko? They are also lying unattended in a bottom drawer. When I attended an opera-related seminar in Germany, I came to know how this problem was being solved there. It turned out that even such a rich theater as the Deutsch Oper could not afford to order new productions annually. It does this once every two or three years, wishing to keep up its prestige. And the money against the order is allocated not by the Ministry of Culture, as is the case here, but by the theater, i.e., the party interested in the quality of a production, a successful premiere, advertising, etc. Here, a theater has productions foisted on it, so it bears no responsibility for and hence is not interested in them. I believe our leaders would do well to ponder this.”
“And can we compare our National Opera with the theaters of other countries, as far as provision of the spectators with playbills and other printed matter is concerned?”
“Now the National Opera of Ukraine has begun to take greater care of its audiences. The latter are given complete texts of the libretto of operas staged in the original language. As to compact discs and video recording, this is a complete mess. We have nothing at all to offer to people interested in Ukrainian art. Formerly, new productions were at least recorded for the radio, now they are not. We are unaware that Ukrainian intellectual products are being squandered. For example, Wagner’s recently-staged Lohengrin was not recorded, although no small funds were invested in it. The point is that such recordings could bring us big profits. The following noteworthy fact gives ample evidence of interest in Ukraine. A French musicologist came to Kyiv. He was greatly impressed by Lysenko’s opera, Taras Bulba. He found in it semblance to a certain great French opera. He wanted to acquire an audio- or video-recording of this work and was very surprised to find nothing. But what struck him most was the archaic stage scenery at our opera house. In his opinion, super- modern laser-equipped opera productions do not create such aesthetic impression as good old scenery does. ‘At last, I’ve visited a genuine theater!’ the foreigner exclaimed after the show. So, as it turned out, we don’t have to catch up with the West in everything.”
MASTER OF HARMONY
When this article was going to press, we received unexpected and bitter news: Vitaly Hubarenko, 65, passed away. A remarkable composer, the author of many operas, ballets, symphonies, chamber vocal pieces, and music scores for theater productions and films, awarded numerous titles and prizes for his creative work, he has long become a classic of Ukrainian culture. He was never stiff and static but modern and unexpected; his harmonious music, still to be fully mastered, was loved greatly by performers and audiences alike.
The Day’s Editors express their condolences to Vitaly Hubarenko’s near and dear.
